Tuscany is a land of resourcefulness. Traditional sweets often derive from the simple bread dough that farm women prepared every week. This is also the case for Pan co’ Santi with sourdough starter. A Sienese sweet, made from bread dough and the so-called “Santi”: pepper, spices, almonds and raisins. In my version without lard I replaced the walnuts with almonds because someone in my household has a serious allergy; it is also lactose-free since I used almond beverage. The result is a semi-sweet loaf, with the bite of pepper and the sweetness of raisins and almonds. Perfect for an afternoon snack or breakfast, but also as an after-dinner treat! If I’ve inspired you, turn on the stand mixer and let’s knead!
For other sweets made with bread dough or stale bread I recommend these links
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Economical
- Rest time: 8 Hours
- Preparation time: 40 Minutes
- Cooking time: 45 Minutes
- Portions: 12Persone
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Regional Italian
- Region: Tuscany
- Seasonality: Autumn, Autumn, Winter
- Energy 486.74 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 78.33 (g) of which sugars 27.35 (g)
- Proteins 10.70 (g)
- Fat 16.34 (g) of which saturated 1.93 (g)of which unsaturated 8.19 (g)
- Fibers 4.38 (g)
- Sodium 262.23 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 110 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
Traditional Pan co’ Santi is made with walnuts and lard and with a larger amount of sugar. I made a lighter version considering my family’s allergies. Obviously you can substitute the almonds for walnuts and toast the nuts in lard to get closer to the original recipe.
- 4 cups type 1 flour (Verna)
- 1 cup water (about 220 g)
- 1/3 cup almond milk (or cow's milk)
- 4 oz sourdough starter (refreshed and doubled)
- 1 1/3 cups raisins
- 6 oz almonds (shelled)
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 4 3/4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp salt
- to taste anise seeds
- to taste wild fennel (dried) (dried)
- 1 egg yolk
Tools
- 1 Stand mixer
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Pan
- 1 Ladle/Spoon
- 1 Work surface
- 1 Container
- 1 Proofing basket
- 1 Napkin
- 1 Brush
Steps
Preparing, shaping and baking Pan co’ Santi with sourdough starter is essentially like making a slightly richer bread dough to which you add spices, raisins and nuts. A bit laborious but not difficult for those who regularly bake bread. For those who don’t, it only takes a little patience and attention, but by following the steps everyone will succeed! I prefer to knead in the raisins and nuts before the resting step, but many do this after the dough has doubled.
The first thing to do is prepare the filling and let it cool. Soak the raisins in a bowl with half water and half sweet wine (or just hot water). Meanwhile, toast the chopped almonds in a nonstick pan with about 1 1/3 tbsp of oil. In 4–5 minutes they will change color.
Drain and squeeze the raisins and add them to the toasted almonds. Stir them over low heat.
At the end add about 1 2/3–2 1/2 tbsp of sugar (20–30 g) and mix. Once the sugar has dissolved, turn off the heat and let cool. Set aside.
In the stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, crumble the sourdough starter. Mix the almond milk and water in a bowl and use about 1/3 cup (roughly 100 g/ml) to dissolve the starter at moderate speed.
Add the flour, another portion of the liquids and make a rough dough.
Switch to the dough hook and add the sugar. Finish adding the liquids and bring the dough to the windowpane stage. The dough should detach from the sides of the bowl, leaving clean walls. Depending on the mixer this can take from 5 to 15 minutes.
With the mixer running, add the remaining olive oil to the dough while maintaining the gluten development.
Add the salt.
Add the pepper (about 3 to 5 g — roughly 1 1/4–2 tsp, depending on taste) and finish the dough.
Meanwhile the almonds and raisins will have cooled. Add the wild fennel and anise and mix them in.
Restart the mixer and incorporate the “Santi” in 3 or 4 additions so the dough can absorb them well. Transfer the dough to the work surface and, after a half-hour rest covered, shape it into a tight ball and place it in a lidded container. Put it in the fridge overnight.
After the night in the refrigerator, let the dough come to room temperature and let it double at room temp or in a warm place. At a temperature of 79°F it will take about two hours.
Once ready, dust the surface lightly with semolina, turn the dough out and gently stretch it into a square.
Bring the corners of the square toward the center to form a smaller square.
Take the corners of this second square and bring them to the center as well.
Close to form a ball, tighten it by rolling on the work surface with the seams underneath. Seal the seams very well.
In a round proofing basket lined with a cotton napkin, sprinkle semolina and place the Pan co’ Santi dough with the seams on top. Fold the napkin over and put a silicone lid on top (or put everything in a plastic bag) to wait for the final rise.
After a couple of hours at 75/79°F it will be almost doubled.
Preheat the oven to 338°F on the conventional (static) setting.
Once at temperature, brush an egg yolk over the surface and bake the Pan co’ Santi with sourdough starter for 45–55 minutes depending on your oven.
Once baked, let it cool on a rack before slicing. Pan co’ Santi with sourdough starter is good on its own but also pairs well with cheeses or fruit preserves.
Pan co’ Santi with sourdough starter keeps for at least 4–5 days in a paper bag. It’s also good toasted if it becomes stale… but that won’t happen because it will be eaten first! If you liked this recipe come tell me on Instagram
